Minocycline Plus Amiodarone Versus Amiodarone Alone for the Prevention of Atrial Fibrillation After Cardiac Surgery

. New- onset postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) is a common complication after cardiac surgery and its occurrence increases with age. POAF can result in clinically significant morbidity and mortality. The national trend in the US is that the population older than 65 years is increasing, making healthcare expenditure related to POAF to be a major burden on health care system. Effective treatment of POAF is imperative in ensuring quality of care and reduction of costs.

In 2021 there is a projected total of 377,763 cardiovascular surgeries in the US alone with approximately half of which will have POAF with longer postoperative length of stay (+3.9 days) and higher discharge costs (+$13,993) than no-POAF patients (Reference: Ann Thorac Surg. 2015 Jan;99(1):109-14). Amiodarone, the currently used therapy, is often insufficient to prevent POAF and has multiple side-effects. In this study, we expect to improve the incidence of POAF by using a common acne drug (Minocycline) that is safe and that could be incorporated in clinical care of this disease.